Deliver end user freedom and IT control from your cloud. Simplify IT management, increase security, and control of end users while decreasing costs by centrally delivering desktop services from your cloud.

View Premier comes with View Composer, ThinApp, View Persona Management, vShield Endpoint, and View Client for Local Mode not available in the Enterprise version. For customers upgrading from View Premier Add-On to Premier Starter 10 Pack. Includes vSphere 5 Desktop for for 10 concurrent connections.

Technical Specifications

Specifications are provided by the manufacturer. Refer to the manufacturer for an explanation
of the print speed and other ratings.

General

Category:

Utilities

Subcategory:

Utilities - desktop virtualization

Header

Brand:

VMware

Compatibility:

PC

Manufacturer:

VMware GSA

Model:

Bundle

Packaged Quantity:

1

Product Line:

VMware Horizon View

Licensing

License Pricing:

Promotional

Software

License Category:

License

License Qty:

100 concurrent users

License Type:

Product upgrade license

Upgrade from:

VMware View 4 Premier Add-on

Version:

5

Software Upgrade Details

License Qty:

50 concurrent connections

Software Type:

VMware View Premier Add-on

Version:

4

Product Reviews

Rated 3.9 out of 5 by 7reviewers.

Rated 5 out of 5 by Jan Hosselaer The most valuable features for us are the Horizon-linked clone desktops, App Volumes, and UEM. Valuable Features:* Horizon-linked clone desktops* App Volumes* UEMImprovements to My Organization:With Horizon view, it requires less administration from us and it provides much more flexibility for our users.Room for Improvement:Integration of app volumes with Horizon View and integration of App Volumes with UEM would be nice additions.Use of Solution:I've used it for three years.Deployment Issues:App volumes introduces longer login times, printer mapping issues (print spooler crashes), and short cut configuration timing issues.Stability Issues:We didn't encounter any issues with stability.Scalability Issues:We didn't encounter any issues with scalability.Customer Service:Customer service is good.Technical Support:Horizon: good. App Volumes and UEM: bad. Their support does not have good knowledge of the product.Previous Solutions:We previously used Citrix. VMware is a better integrated solution for virtual desktops.Initial Setup:The initial setup was straightforward, but minimal. It takes time to configure all details. The default configuration should be better.Implementation Team:We are a consultancy partner. We implement it.Other Solutions Considered:We evaluated Citrix XenDesktop.Other Advice:Always use VMware Horizon Enterprise Suite. It has deep integration with the hypervisor. It is total solution.Disclaimer: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:We're an enterprise partner. January 14, 2016

Rated 3 out of 5 by SysAdmin318 It allows us to spin up desktops and set multiple images quickly, although it lacks enough standardized instructions and rules. Valuable Features:The ability to spin up desktops as quickly as possible. You just build one image and then set multiple images and be ready quickly.Improvements to My Organization:If you have a training session, you can spin up more very quickly, which helps in the training ability for end-users.Room for Improvement:I wish there were more standardized instructions and rules. There are too many gotchas.Stability Issues:We're moving to 6.1 from 5.x, so far it's been good. An older version was unstable, but that was before I got there.Scalability Issues:There's some little gotchas with moving some up, and you can only have so many VMs, so it does have limitations.Initial Setup:It’s a little advanced because more gotchas (certificates, different servers in different order).Other Advice:Make sure you know the product, and do a POC first.Disclaimer: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions. September 30, 2015

Rated 3 out of 5 by DataProcessingMgr286 It’s a more secure environment for desktops than a physical environment, although it lacks incorporation of VDI administration. Valuable Features:The ability to log in from anywhere is huge. Remote access is a third party product, but with them working together, it's is great.Improvements to My Organization:I would say that it’s a more secure environment for desktops than a physical environment.Room for Improvement:Right now, we use a third party product to do the VDI administration, which has been fairly good for us. We’re looking for one vendor to be able to manage all aspects of the stack to make it more efficient and stable.Stability Issues:Not so stable – there’s a lot of new issues that we have not experienced before on the physical desktop side that become challenges for us when trying to solve on the client side. This is really an infrastructure side product, so troubleshooting for us from the client side is more difficult, and we tend to need to escalate and get assistance from the infrastructure staff frequently.Scalability Issues:We kind of halted everything simply because of several technical issues that needed to be resolved to make the old system more stable before we plan on rolling out more. We’re currently looking at going to a generation 2 VDI with vCenter 6 and Horizon View 6.Technical Support:I've indirectly dealt with them. My staff have opened cases with VMware, and they’ve always been good to work with. However, sometimes our issues are in house, or caused by a third party, so it’s difficult to know how to divide and conquer, from where we sit at client support.Previous Solutions:The CIO had a vision and wanted to push toward the anytime anywhere capability for our customers.Other Solutions Considered:I wasn’t involved, but I’m sure they looked at Citrix.Other Advice:We look at a products, the ability to respond quickly and completely are important. I would wait until the whole system matures a little more and comes together as far as where everything is under one vendor, so that it’s more stable and efficient. A few technical bugs need to be worked out, and we had some trouble with video display, and that could’ve been avoided.Disclaimer: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions. September 29, 2015

Rated 5 out of 5 by Carl Cook It allows us to do a lot from the back end where we don’t have to impact the users at all, including spinning up a VM for solutions any end-user needs. Valuable Features:The administrative console – it allows us to do a lot from the back-end where we don’t have to impact the users at all.Improvements to My Organization:We can spin up a virtual machine real quick for any solutions that any end-user needs. That’s what I really like.Room for Improvement:Well, one of the features we would like to have (even though it was released last year), was NSX. We’re providing a web portal services so that we can spin out any servers that they need, so those things would help. The NSX is something that we are looking at right now.Stability Issues:It’s very stable. We have a very stable environment. We use a cloud provider to provision our desktop, just trying to get our servers to collaborate together takes a bit of a challenge. It’s an ongoing transition, so the knowledge transition takes a bit of time.Scalability Issues:We’ve scaled up a lot. When we first started out, we’re fairly young using a virtual environment. We started with 130, and moved to over 500 now. It’s great and it’s not time consuming at all or difficult. It’s been rewarding to us.The only downfall in our organization is the budget constraints, as we’re a nonprofit organization, so using a third party cloud provider is not free, so we have to let our user community know about the costs associated with using the environment. It’s a direct cost.Technical Support:They’re great. They use the case number customer support, and the technician will contact you and you tell them your issues. They give you a knowledge based article, and then if you can’t resolve the issue they will get back with you. They also do a WebEx session with you in figuring our problems. They’re able to resolve it right away. When I have to call them, they’re very good at what they do, and especially talking to somebody on the phone, they’re very knowledgeable in diagnosing issues. They share information, they communicate well, and they give you a comfort zone to make sure you’re ok with everything.Previous Solutions:We were using an HP appliance, and we were trying to get away and use what VMware recommended. Our HP appliance was out of warranty and old, and we just needed o upgrade.Initial Setup:The design was complex to understand. When we set it up on our environment, I went through the classes but doing it hands on was a little different. However, after that initial hurdle, it was very clear.Other Solutions Considered:Dependability, stability, and ease of use are what we look for. We looked at Citrix and Microsoft, we went with VMware as we had been using VMWare for the last ten years in our tech lab, so it was easy to just have it across the board.Definitely. Peer reviews are one of the first things I take a look at before creating my vendor list.Other Advice:We would have to be completely VMware, i.e every product we have from VMware to have it working perfectly. However, it is great for us right now though.Disclaimer: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions. September 29, 2015

Rated 4 out of 5 by Pooran Rambharose Our students can now access our software remotely without VPN, though I'd like the option to use View Persona without paying more. Valuable Features:* The concurrent user license model, which allows our students to use it without being named users.* The security server that allows them to remotely access their virtual desktops without VPN access.* Non-persistent/link clones are important because students login/logoff, and virtual desktops are refreshed back to a state that’s pristine for the next student.* Very eco-friendly because there are no physical desktops to use electricity.* Zero Client as endpoints use only one watt (our buildings are platinum-level green and we need low electricity consumption to maintain that level).Improvements to My Organization:In the past, students had to physically go to labs to access software, but now they can access them from any device anywhere, and don’t have to login via VPN because of the security server part of Horizon.Room for Improvement:View Persona, it’s been pushed to the wayside because they acquired UEM, and I’d prefer to use it, but have no budget for it. View Persona has less features than UEM, and it doesn’t seem updated, which makes a difference for standard edition users.Stability Issues:It is stable, but it depends on the use case. For us, we use it to allow students to access their desktops anywhere, at anytime. We just use the standard version, not the full enterprise one. We would like to go enterprise, but don’t the have budget for it. But, the standard version has been stable and addressed by support and updates. No issues that would cause us to turn away.Scalability Issues:Recently had issue with the 3D application performance with the release of 6.1, and added VGPU support. All we had to do was add hardware (Nvidia K1 cards).Technical Support:It's responsive, but a few times we had issues with their tech knowledge and troubleshooting steps. We had to escalate the issue and then it was resolved.Initial Setup:It was complex, and many facets on the networking side sit on top of vSphere, with multiple composer engines, and connection servers.Other Advice:It loses points becuase I can’t take advantage of enterprise stuff. You should do a POC to make sure it fits the use case, three to four month period, and make sure you involve your networking team.Disclaimer: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions. September 24, 2015

Rated 3 out of 5 by Abdul Latheef M We've been able to remove 70% of the desktops from our classrooms and onto VDI, but the VM management console should be improved. Valuable Features:The most valuable feature is virtual machine provisioning.Improvements to My Organization:We used to have desktops in our class rooms, and now 30% of our classrooms are on VDI. It is very easy to manage centrally and complaints about PCs in classrooms are less than 5% now.Room for Improvement:The pools and virtual machine management console should be improved, as there is no way to group PCs in different pools, etc.Use of Solution:I've used it for one year.Deployment Issues:No issues encountered.Stability Issues:There have been a few problems.Scalability Issues:No issues encountered.Customer Service:It's good.Technical Support:I had trouble with tech support one, as the person I was speaking to wasn't good.Previous Solutions:No previous solution was in place.Initial Setup:It was a little complex when configuring Active Directory and other server roles.Implementation Team:I implemented it myself.ROI:It is very high, we are planning to introduce to all of our class rooms.Cost and Licensing Advice:Pricing is high as VMware costs are always high.Other Solutions Considered:No other options were evaluated.Other Advice:It is a good solution, it is stable.Disclaimer: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions. August 10, 2015

Rated 4 out of 5 by Lino Telera It provides employees using many devices with portability but not for Linux desktops which should be included. Valuable Features:Features like LinkedClone, Desktop Pool with many delivery options and one single pane of glass to rule all desktop environments can simplify VDI management and reduce infrastructure costs.Improvements to My Organization:In my low use-case, Horizon VDI is showing the agility to provide employees using many devices such as a tablet, PC and Mac, with portability but still stay within an active directory environment, with data and software which are in a "usable secure place".Room for Improvement:I think that providing the solution for Linux desktops could be a real improvement as this would deliver desktops for operations and administrative operators without huge licensing costs (Desktops that have LibreOffice, Firefox and Linux client for client-server application). Another enhancement for this product could be a more simplified active directory GPO management through the Horizon Administrator console.Use of Solution:I've been using this solution for one year, but only for demo purposes. We use this solution to try to demonstrate its real value.Deployment Issues:During the deployment take care with deploying the primary domain controller and the underlying vSphere environment.The VMs must be correctly resolved, NTP must be correctly reached and synchronized to, and PDC must be correctly configured. No issues will be encountered if you watch out for these simple constraints.Stability Issues:The product is mature, and stability is never compromised. In some cases, stability is gained by the underlying infrastructure stability. For this reason, pay attention to infrastructure metrics like storage IOPS and CPU utilization. In my case, the underlying infrastructure is covering up many possible issues.Scalability Issues:I haven't scaled out my infrastructure, because my environment didn't reach the limit.Customer Service:I haven't used it in this environment.Technical Support:I haven't used it in this environment.Previous Solutions:Yes, I used Microsoft Terminal server (from Windows Server 2003 and 2008). I suggest deploying this solution to a few remote desktops, but still keep a VDI solution because it is lacking in many features like management, mobility and multimedia experience. For this reason, I switched to Horizon.Initial Setup:Deployment is not very easy, because there are many implications with the underlying infrastructure (which must be used only as a VDI infrastructure) and Active Directory GPO, which cannot be directly handled by View Administrator.Implementation Team:I deployed this solution in house and alone.ROI:Choosing VDI to save hardware costs is not the goal of Horizon, because the infrastructure and licensing break-even point can only be reached after the 1000th VDI. ROI must be measured in controlling the manpower costs. For this reason, often it is difficult to show the real advantage of the Horizon solution. In my case, because I'm using it for demo purposes I can't give more details about this.Cost and Licensing Advice:Licensing costs are important and physical infrastructure could not be shared between classic server virtual datacenter and a Horizon environment. In my case the use of NFR costs (only for demo purpose) are near zero, (the infrastructure is made by using recycled hardware).Other Solutions Considered:Yes, we also looked at Windows Terminal Server.Other Advice:In my opinion, this product should be the first environment that an enterprise company must consider. This product is a potential first player providing a top enterprise solution to deliver VDI in large and very large environments. For this reason, my rating of is 10/10 when considering a solution for enterprise environment and 8/10 in a mid-size deployment.Pay attention to how many virtual desktops you should deliver and what is the real desktop utilization.A few desktops and too much customizations could cause an unjustified costs for three years.Disclaimer: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:My company is a VMware solution provider partner (sell a private cloud solution) and VMware service provider partner. March 24, 2015